Sections

The shot heard around the world: The top five conspiracies in sports

Bobby Thompson's 'shot heard round the world' came against the Brooklyn Dodgers at the Polo Grounds in New York City. Thompson's ninth-inning homer won the 1951 pennant for the New York Giants but he was later accused of having advance knowledge of what pitches were being thrown at him. Some say that a conspirator in centerfield read the catcher's signals and then relayed them to the dugout electronically.

Now that all of the shows marking the 50th anniversary of the JFK assassination have finally run their course and every possible angle from every possible position by every possible assassin has been dissected, analyzed, and dissected again, I thought why not take another shot at some of the conspiracies in sports that just won’t go away?

There’s one from each of the big four sports, with a side of Muhammad Ali just to make it the greatest of all time. So put on your conspiracy caps and let’s try to fix some fixes.

5. Super Bowl III was ‘fixed’

‘We’re going to win Sunday. I guarantee it.’

— ‘Broadway’ Joe Namath

Not many remember how much was at stake in 1969 when the Baltimore Colts played the New York Jets in Super Bowl III. Some say that the future of the NFL was on the line. It pitted the Baltimore Colts of the well-established NFL against the New York Jets of the 10-year-old upstart American Football League. The AFL still lacked legitimacy and its champion was not considered a legitimate contender. Although a merger of the two leagues was being contemplated, it was agreed that the AFL still needed to establish credibility before such a merger could take place. Baltimore was 18-point favourites against the underdog Jets but that didn’t stop the Jets’ flamboyant quarterback Joe Namath from famously “guaranteeing” a win.

Three days before the game, Broadway Joe responded to a heckler with the now-famous boast, ”we’re going to win Sunday. I guarantee it.” Was it just confidence, as he would later claim, or did he know something that no one else did? Regardless of which side of the conspiracy fence you sit, his prediction proved right when the Jets won 16-7, thanks in part to five Baltimore turnovers. There were also questions surrounding Colts quarterback Earl Morrell’s play and some of the decisions made by head coach Don Shula. After the game, Colts player and future Police Academy star Bubba Smith stated that Super Bowl III was “set up” for the Jets to win. He claimed that the game was fixed so the multimillion dollar merger could happen.

To further heighten suspicions, conspiracy theorists point to Namath’s bar in New York that became a popular hangout for mob figures. NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle did eventually order Namath to close it but not before Joe and his “associates” had a chance to rig Super Bowl III over a few brewskies … or so the story goes.

The Jets’ victory allowed owners to profit millions of dollars and paved the way for the modern NFL. Had the Colts won (which seemed inevitable at the time because they were the most dominate team the league had ever seen to that point) the Super Bowl may have ceased to exist and the NFL would’ve lost millions in future TV revenues. The Jets win cured all of the NFL’s ills. It provided the AFL with the credibility they were so sorely lacking and it allowed the two leagues to merge into the billion-dollar behemoth we know today.

Whether Super Bowl III was fixed by the league in concert with some of Namath’s less-than-desirable cohorts may still be too broad a question to answer, but one thing is for certain: there really are no guarantees in life. Or are there?

4. Ali’s ‘phantom punch’

‘Get up and fight, sucker!’

— Muhammad Ali

In February 1964, Cassius Clay (he converted to Islam and changed his name the next day) beat heavyweight champ Sonny Liston. The former champ claimed he had a shoulder injury and refused to come out for the seventh round. A rematch was scheduled in 1965. In the second fight, Ali threw a jab and Liston dropped to the floor midway through the first round. The knockout punch, a quick right jab, has often been called the “phantom punch” because it went virtually undetected and Liston seemed to go down unscathed. He appears to start getting up off the canvas and falls back down, where he waits for the referee to begin counting. Even Ali himself was skeptical about the easy with which the slugger went down. While standing over Liston, Ali was apparently screaming at his him, “Get up and fight, sucker!” Ali can also be seen asking his corner, “Did I hit him?”

In his 2009 book, The 30 Greatest Sports Conspiracy Theories of All Time, author Elliott Kalb writes that “one popular theory is that Liston owed a ton of money to organized crime figures, so he bet against himself and didn’t want to risk landing a lucky punch.” Liston publicly denied this claim but Kalb’s book states that his widow believed the rematch was fixed. Liston claimed in an interview with Mark Kram for the book, Ghosts of Manila, that he intentionally took a dive because he feared the Black Muslims would retaliate. Of course, that could just be a cover story for his real reason for losing – to erase the debt he owed.

A slow motion video of the “phantom punch” shows that Ali did actually make contact with Liston, but it’s still too hard to gauge whether the impact of such a short right would have enough force to knock out Liston. What we do know is that this conspiracy won’t go down like Liston, which may make it the greatest controversy of all time!!!

3. Jordan’s ‘forced’ retirement

‘Five years down the road, if the urge comes back, if the Bulls will have me, if David Stern lets me back in the league, I may come back.’

— Michael Jordan

This one just keeps bouncing around. At first, nobody could understand it. Why would Jordan, at the peak of his career and seen as an athlete without rivals, abruptly retire? Superstars don’t usually quit the game they love at a relatively young age (Jordan was 30) to try a sport they haven’t played since they were a kid.

It wasn’t long before reports of Jordan’s casino gambling debts during the previous season’s playoffs began to surface. They soon caught the attention of NBA Commissioner David Stern. Speculation began that the Bulls star’s retirement in 1993 was actually an undisclosed suspension from the NBA for gambling. The theory goes that because Jordan was the league’s most marketable player, it would benefit the NBA to keep it quiet and have Jordan go do something else for a year like, let’s say, minor league baseball.

Jordan claimed he had accomplished everything in basketball (except for several more championships apparently) and that he wanted a new challenge — being easily struck out by Double-A pitchers would more than qualify. Baseball may not have been very good to him and it definitely hurt his image, but not nearly as much as a public suspension over enormous gambling debts would have.

However, Ron Shelton, who made a documentary about Jordan’s year in the minors for ESPN’s 30 for 30 series, told the Chicago Tribune in 2010 that he found nothing to support the theory that Jordan was forced out by Stern. “I probably, like most people in America, thought he left the NBA for a year because of gambling,” Shelton said. “After researching the project, I was utterly convinced that was nonsense. And probably like most people, I thought he was a catastrophically bad baseball player. And after researching it, I got a different view about that, as well. Everybody that I talked to said they spent hundreds of hours looking for smoking guns and there is not even a leak; it’s just circumstantial. It’s just a theory.”

Could it be the best basketball player of all time and one of sports most marketable figures worldwide was forced out for betting? If so, it sounds to me like it was the NBA that was taking the gamble. Then again, maybe it’s all just a lot of bull.

2. Gretzky’s California dreaming

‘Well, I don’t know whether you ever win or lose in that kind of a deal, but you could say hockey won.’

— Glen Sather

Another league, another top superstar involved in a conspiracy. Gretzky was the equivalent of Jordan for Canadians and the NHL. He was roughly at the same point in his career as Jordan was in the NBA when the trade happened. After winning four Stanley Cups with the Edmonton Oilers, conspiracy theorists are convinced that the NHL forced Gretzky’s departure to Los Angeles in 1988 to spur hockey growth in the U.S., and in particular in the southern U.S. where hockey was about as popular as Obama on election day. The NHL could not afford to have its biggest star exist solely in the northern outpost of Edmonton. His trade to L.A. resulted in millions of dollars for NHL owners and the trade’s effects are still felt today.

Questions still linger over why the Oilers would trade an institution like Gretzky in his prime. One theory suggests the NHL orchestrated it because only a marquee player of Gretzky’s stature could get Americans interested in hockey. The NHL was also looking to broaden its base into untapped southern markets and collect all of the expansion fees that would come with it. More teams across the U.S. would also give the league enhanced status and place it more on par with members of the big three. Perhaps even a better television deal might result with the sport’s increased exposure in more markets. Maybe I’m just dreaming in Don Cherry technicolour red.

There’s also the theory that Gretzky’s new wife, actress Janet Jones, dragged her husband to Hollywood where she could further her career. Remember that without the trade there may never have been a fifth installment of Police Academy. At least Paulina stayed true to her northern roots.

Paulina Gretzky renounces Canadian roots in this month’s Maxim: ‘I know where my dad is from, but I’m American’ http://t.co/sqmIIjEsD2

A more realistic explanation is that Edmonton’s owner Peter Pocklington could no longer afford Gretzky. He traded him primarily for the cash ($15 million), picks and cheaper players. The Gretzkys may have gotten everything they wanted out of the move and Pocklington may have acquired his much-needed windfall, but the real winner appears to be the NHL itself. This is why the conspiracy theories continue to persist 25 years later. The Kings became the hottest team in the league with Gretzky. Subsequently, the NHL added four new American teams within five years of his arrival in California. The list of American teams (especially in the south) that were added to the league or relocated after 1988 include: Dallas; Carolina; Colorado; Phoenix; San Jose; Tamp Bay; Florida; Anaheim; Atlanta; Columbus; and Minnesota. Gretzky opened the league up to an entirely new fan base as well. Celebrities could now be seen rink-side just like their fellow tenants, the L.A. Lakers. It became posh to see the Kings play. The black-and-white version of No. 99 became a fashion staple.

But most importantly, the NHL completely changed its makeup after the trade. It was the entity that profited the most from the deal and it is also likely that it may have actually brokered the deal. Gretzky himself, basically said as much in the tear-filled trade announcement. Well, you know what Bettman always says, no Wayne, no gain.

1. Black Sox 1919 World Series

‘I am going to meet the greatest umpire of all — and He knows I’m innocent.’

–“Shoeless” Joe Jackson

“Shoeless” Joe Jackson

America’s national pastime scandalized by dirty mobsters and crooked players, and of things, in the World Series? Say it ain’t so Joe. In 1919, the Chicago White Sox lost the series in eight games to the underdog Cincinnati Reds. Eight White Sox players were later accused of taking bribes from gamblers to intentionally lose. The accused players were pitchers Eddie Cicotte and Claude ‘Lefty’ Williams, first baseman Arnold ‘Chick’ Gandil, shortstop Charles ‘Swede’ Risberg, third baseman George ‘Buck’ Weaver, outfielders ‘Shoeless Joe’ Jackson and Oscar ‘Happy’ Felsch, and utility infielder Fred McMullin. A grand jury was called to investigate. Cicotte, Williams, Jackson and Felsch admitted to the grand jury that they had thrown the 1919 series. Court records suggest that the eight players received $70,000 to $100,000.

Nevertheless, all of the indicted players were acquitted because key evidence, including the original confessions, had disappeared. Despite their acquittal, all eight players were banned for life. Few of the gamblers testified, and none were ever brought to trial for bribery.

Despite the rumours among gamblers that the fix was in and that a sudden influx of cash was coming in on Cincinnati, most people still thought the series was on the up and up. On October 2, the day of Game 1, the Philadelphia Bulletin published a poem which would later prove to be ironic:

Still, it really doesn’t matter,

After all, who wins the flag.

Good clean sport is what we’re after,

And we aim to make our brag

To each near or distant nation

Whereon shines the sporting sun

That of all our games gymnastic

Base ball is the cleanest one!

Not quite. And with that in mind, Cicotte would hit the Reds’ leadoff hitter in the back on the second pitch of the Series as a signal the players were on board.

There is more evidence that this scandal was more reality than conspiracy. Its impact was far-reaching and long-lasting. However, there is still support for some of the accused players like Jackson. They point to his 12 hits in 32 at bats for a .375 batting average with 5 runs scored, 3 doubles, 1 home run, and 6 RBIs during the Series. Jackson remains on baseball’s ineligible list which precludes his election to the Hall of Fame. When it comes to the Black Sox scandal, some ardent baseball historians are still crying foul.

Here are eight more conspiracies that didn’t quite make the list of five. You be the judge. The answers are out there. Cue the X-Files tune….

The 1985 draft is rigged so the New York Knicks get Patrick Ewing.

Michael Phelps beats Serbian swimmer in the finals of the 100m butterfly in 2008.

The Soviets win basketball gold in 1972 with extra time.

French judge robs Jamie Sale and David Pelletier at Salt Lake.

Ronaldo forced to play sick in the World Cup .

Did Bobby Riggs rig the battle of the sexes against Billie Jean King ?